I only became aware of Thomas Covenant after the release of Runes Of The Earth. It does look interesting. I have a friend who has read the Dark Tower series by Stephen King and he tells me the endings a bit of a cop out. But I'm still considering reading it because I love this notion of a character going through epic landscapes on a perilous journey.
What non bushcraft books do you read?
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Interesting. I think I saw his King Of The Foxes being highly recommended in Waterstones but it has been savaged by Amazon reviewers as being lazy 
I had earlier asked Grooveski if he had read Mythago Wood and he hadn't. Have you? Waterstones don't seem to have it, not in Belfast anyway.
I had earlier asked Grooveski if he had read Mythago Wood and he hadn't. Have you? Waterstones don't seem to have it, not in Belfast anyway. Haven't read King of Foxes I'm on the 3rd book after Magician but I'm sure I will get around to it I have been very impressed with his work so far.
Haven't read Mythago Wood, will have to check it out. Some of my favourite fantasy books are The Ellenium and The Tamuli series by David Eddings. Brilliant books.
Haven't read Mythago Wood, will have to check it out. Some of my favourite fantasy books are The Ellenium and The Tamuli series by David Eddings. Brilliant books.
Wenie said:I'm with you on that one, it's one of the funniest books I've read...
there were some really funny laugh out loud sections of the diceman however some really shocking pieces also. it also read as a book i could believe to be a true account ,it also inspired me to buy a set of red lucite dice and try the life of dice.by the way i got the book after reading an article in loaded which goes to prove its not all drivel .
Have you read The Book of the Die too? It's sort of a handbook for living by the dice, quite worth a read too...heeby said:
Aha, Mythago Wood has follow up's. I've read one of those but looking through them I couldn't even tell you which one. Was pretty confusing since it assumed you already knew most of the characters but I enjoyed it. Was different, quite emotional and personal. Might pick them up sometime now that you've reminded me.
Thomas Covenant I couldn't go. By the time I got to the second book I was not enjoying it so picked up the last in the first series and tried it. The writing style was the same so I took them back(in a rucksack(I'd borrowed the lot ) they have got that going for them, they'd keep you going for a while).
Magician was good. Good sense of humour, like the David Eddings Belgariad, Ellenium(sp) series and the Dragonlance series(Tas is my all-time favorate fantasy character, ever, bar none), they're a hoot, crying with laughter at times. None of it grabs you my the goolies and freaks you out though.
If anyone's seen The Earthsea Trilogy in it's recent TV "adaptation", erase it from your mind, don't ever watch it again, give it a few years to get over it then try the book, it's good stuff if a little heavy.
A good light tearjerker is the Anne McCaffrey dragonrider series. There's millions of them when you get them together . They're good "buy one for the train" material, but they're not journeys, more feudal living.
None of them to me are a patch on Song of Albion.
Afterwards I tried a whole bunch of other Stephen Lawhead books and wasn't much into them. Liked his sci-fi but the fantasy didn't rate high on my tolkien scale. I was gutted!
Dice living wasn't for me(although it's a fun way of choosing drinks faced with a large gantry). Great book, never knew there was another, cheers Wenie!.
Thomas Covenant I couldn't go. By the time I got to the second book I was not enjoying it so picked up the last in the first series and tried it. The writing style was the same so I took them back(in a rucksack(I'd borrowed the lot
) they have got that going for them, they'd keep you going for a while).Magician was good. Good sense of humour, like the David Eddings Belgariad, Ellenium(sp) series and the Dragonlance series(Tas is my all-time favorate fantasy character, ever, bar none), they're a hoot, crying with laughter at times. None of it grabs you my the goolies and freaks you out though.
If anyone's seen The Earthsea Trilogy in it's recent TV "adaptation", erase it from your mind, don't ever watch it again, give it a few years to get over it then try the book, it's good stuff if a little heavy.
A good light tearjerker is the Anne McCaffrey dragonrider series. There's millions of them when you get them together
. They're good "buy one for the train" material, but they're not journeys, more feudal living. None of them to me are a patch on Song of Albion.
Afterwards I tried a whole bunch of other Stephen Lawhead books and wasn't much into them. Liked his sci-fi but the fantasy didn't rate high on my tolkien scale. I was gutted!
Dice living wasn't for me(although it's a fun way of choosing drinks faced with a large gantry). Great book, never knew there was another, cheers Wenie!.
The David Eddings The Ellenium and The Tamuli series are definitely in my top 5 ever, brilliant books. Regarding Thomas Covenant, liked the first book but really did not enjoy the 2nd series as much and never finished them.
Earthsea is ok, Ursula le Guin tried to distance herself as much as possible from the appalling tv adaptation and I don't blame her.
Magician I really enjoyed, Silverthorn not so much but A Darkness at Sethanon (I am on the last couple of hundred pages) makes up for it, I just wish it was a little longer.
Another book I like is Warlock by Wilbur Smith.
Earthsea is ok, Ursula le Guin tried to distance herself as much as possible from the appalling tv adaptation and I don't blame her.
Magician I really enjoyed, Silverthorn not so much but A Darkness at Sethanon (I am on the last couple of hundred pages) makes up for it, I just wish it was a little longer.
Another book I like is Warlock by Wilbur Smith.
Recently I read the first volume of "The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times" by Hovannisian (Papazian's review here ), a book on the destruction of Smyrna by Housepian, and a book on the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and subsequent partition.
And a book on Armenian cooking, another on Japanese swordmaking.
Yesterday I finished the first Harry Potter, and started the second this morning.
I've got two books on knots on the go, and I'm about to start "The Burning Tigris" by Balakian, "Canoeing Basics" by Melinda Allan, and "Bass" by Boyle and Ciampi (it's about the fish, not music).
I've just realised that the books about knots and canoeing (and possibly the fishing) might just, at a push, be considered a bit bushy...
K.
And a book on Armenian cooking, another on Japanese swordmaking.
Yesterday I finished the first Harry Potter, and started the second this morning.
I've got two books on knots on the go, and I'm about to start "The Burning Tigris" by Balakian, "Canoeing Basics" by Melinda Allan, and "Bass" by Boyle and Ciampi (it's about the fish, not music).
I've just realised that the books about knots and canoeing (and possibly the fishing) might just, at a push, be considered a bit bushy...
K.
Fiction:
I'll agree with Holdstock's Mythago wood and it's first sequel.
I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned Charles De Lint so far. I'm currently reading Greenmantle for about the 5th time. I can also heartily recommend his Moonheart and Yarrow too. The best blend of modern world meets ancient mystery I've yet come accross.
Pure fantasy, I'd go for Barbara Hambly's Dragonsbane. Also her Time of the Dark trilogy.
Non-fiction:
I recently finished "Four Quarters of Light" by Brian Keenan. 'Course, depends on how you define bushcraft. There's a wonderful description of him learning to mush and being in the middle of a frozen Alaskan lake watching the aurora borealis.
"Urban Dreams, Rural Reality" was fun - about a couple dumping the rat race to go live in Wales.
I'll agree with Holdstock's Mythago wood and it's first sequel.
I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned Charles De Lint so far. I'm currently reading Greenmantle for about the 5th time. I can also heartily recommend his Moonheart and Yarrow too. The best blend of modern world meets ancient mystery I've yet come accross.
Pure fantasy, I'd go for Barbara Hambly's Dragonsbane. Also her Time of the Dark trilogy.
Non-fiction:
I recently finished "Four Quarters of Light" by Brian Keenan. 'Course, depends on how you define bushcraft. There's a wonderful description of him learning to mush and being in the middle of a frozen Alaskan lake watching the aurora borealis.
"Urban Dreams, Rural Reality" was fun - about a couple dumping the rat race to go live in Wales.
I try to read a variety of subject; including comic books, archeological text, historical books, science fiction CG :yo:
I'm currently reading "Scramble for Africa" which is a bit big and heavy-going. But also enjoyed the Russian classics - "Crime and Punishment" Dostoyevski and "War and Peace" Tolstoy.
For an evening's laughter and light entertainment, then Pratchett, or Lemony Snickett.
National Geographic magazine is excellent and worth every penny of the subscription, but always leaves me with itchy feet.
...Harry Potter...
And who can beat "Lord of the Rings"?
For an evening's laughter and light entertainment, then Pratchett, or Lemony Snickett.
National Geographic magazine is excellent and worth every penny of the subscription, but always leaves me with itchy feet.
...Harry Potter...
And who can beat "Lord of the Rings"?
First off I hate Toilken, can't be bothered wading through Pratchett's books for the witty bits and find Anne McCaffrey turgid.
Not critisising anyone who reads them in the least, I just don't like 'em but for some reason everyone seems to assume that I do.... So I keep getting given the books and have to listen to diatribes about the characters/worlds involved seemingly endlessly.
As SWMBO is constantly pointing out, I read crap..... Real "pulp fiction" Sven Hassel, James Axler, Jerry Ahern and the ilk.... These are my bedside books. They require no thought, have no taliking points, few morals and very little that is memorable. You can pick them up, read what you want and then sleep. No worries.
When I want slightly more serious fiction, I'm a "technothriller" type with deviations into sci-fi and war/secret agent type stuff. Heinlein. Pournelle. King. Clancy. Bond. "McNabb" & Ryan are all to be found in my "library"
I'm a sucker for anything apocalyptic/post apocalyptic.
However, the vast majority of my reading is non-fiction. History, particularly military history; Light Philosophy; Self sufficiency/bushcraft/survival texts (which stretches into primers on subjects like civil engineering and animal husbandry); Auto/Biographies; Military Doctrinal & Technical texts, particularly those relating to weapons development; Radio/Communications tech. Publications.....
Not critisising anyone who reads them in the least, I just don't like 'em but for some reason everyone seems to assume that I do.... So I keep getting given the books and have to listen to diatribes about the characters/worlds involved seemingly endlessly.
As SWMBO is constantly pointing out, I read crap..... Real "pulp fiction" Sven Hassel, James Axler, Jerry Ahern and the ilk.... These are my bedside books. They require no thought, have no taliking points, few morals and very little that is memorable. You can pick them up, read what you want and then sleep. No worries.
When I want slightly more serious fiction, I'm a "technothriller" type with deviations into sci-fi and war/secret agent type stuff. Heinlein. Pournelle. King. Clancy. Bond. "McNabb" & Ryan are all to be found in my "library"
I'm a sucker for anything apocalyptic/post apocalyptic.
However, the vast majority of my reading is non-fiction. History, particularly military history; Light Philosophy; Self sufficiency/bushcraft/survival texts (which stretches into primers on subjects like civil engineering and animal husbandry); Auto/Biographies; Military Doctrinal & Technical texts, particularly those relating to weapons development; Radio/Communications tech. Publications.....
My favourite novels of all time are 1984 and The Trial.
Non-fiction-wise; I particularly like anything which paints a picture of what life in Paleolithic and Mesolithic Britain was like. The best I've read like that recently is "Britain BC" by Francis Pryor. I also like a good ethnographic text, I'm slowly trying to acquire all of Gerardo Reichel-Dolmatoff's books as the three or so that I've read have been astounding. He spent the best part of 30 years living with Tukanoan tribes in the Amazon and gives a very in depth account of their world view.
I'd also recommend "The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Hunters and Gatherers" (if you like that sort of thing).
Pappa
Non-fiction-wise; I particularly like anything which paints a picture of what life in Paleolithic and Mesolithic Britain was like. The best I've read like that recently is "Britain BC" by Francis Pryor. I also like a good ethnographic text, I'm slowly trying to acquire all of Gerardo Reichel-Dolmatoff's books as the three or so that I've read have been astounding. He spent the best part of 30 years living with Tukanoan tribes in the Amazon and gives a very in depth account of their world view.
I'd also recommend "The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Hunters and Gatherers" (if you like that sort of thing).
Pappa
I liked to read Masanobu Fukuoka's books which are about phylosophy and natural farming (which is in fact horticulture):
-The one straw revolution
-Natural farming
-The road back to nature
He has some great things to say.
I just read Jared Diamond's books Collapse and Guns, Germs and Steel which are interesting as well. The combination of these books and Anthropik's thirty theses made me understand a lot about society. And it looks like we're in for a tough and exciting ride in the next decades.
I also like "A theory of power" from Jeff Vail : http://www.jeffvail.net . Short and powerful.
-The one straw revolution
-Natural farming
-The road back to nature
He has some great things to say.
I just read Jared Diamond's books Collapse and Guns, Germs and Steel which are interesting as well. The combination of these books and Anthropik's thirty theses made me understand a lot about society. And it looks like we're in for a tough and exciting ride in the next decades.
I also like "A theory of power" from Jeff Vail : http://www.jeffvail.net . Short and powerful.
Found another one which rocks my boat.
I love the book:
Awareness
by
Anthony de Mello -
cheers
Abbe
I love the book:
Awareness
by
Anthony de Mello -
cheers
Abbe
Just read the first four Harry Potter books, then two books by Jeanne Duprau ("City of Ember" and "People of Sparks") and I'm part way through Balakian's "Burning Tigris".
Last week, my wife gave me "Handbook of Knots and splices" by Gibson.
And a couple of days ago, I bought "Baits, Rigs and Tackly" by Vic Dunaway. It's about fishing.
K.
Last week, my wife gave me "Handbook of Knots and splices" by Gibson.
And a couple of days ago, I bought "Baits, Rigs and Tackly" by Vic Dunaway. It's about fishing.
K.
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